


Like a Rebirth

by merewiowing



Category: Fate/Zero, Fate/stay night & Related Fandoms
Genre: Alternate Universe - Fairy Tale, Alternate Universe - Rapunzel Fusion, F/F
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-05-02
Updated: 2016-05-02
Packaged: 2018-06-05 23:40:40
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,386
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6728056
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/merewiowing/pseuds/merewiowing
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Irisviel, the sole daughter of a powerful mage, escapes from under her father's watchful eye.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Like a Rebirth

**Author's Note:**

> for bee/tumblr user lilinkind! terribly sorry about how long you had to wait.

On a bright morning in a faraway land, a daughter was born to a powerful mage.

 

The mage saw a tremendous potential in the child. His family was old and heavy with tradition, and he feared there will be no one to carry the torch after he passed away. He saw, in the blue morning light, that by his daughter’s deeds their name would continue to be immortal, and for the first time in years, he smiled.

His smile faded soon, though, like a candle snuffed out. He could not afford to ever lose sight of his child. And so, returning the girl to the nursemaid, he left the room and made arrangements. His warding spells around his castle were to be strengthened. His guards were to be doubled in number. His servants were to watch his daughter day and night. 

His daughter was to never leave the castle without his explicit permission. 

The mage’s daughter grew up, as cheerful as a songbird, unaware of her father’s watchful eyes following her every move. Not knowing anything else, she loved her room, she loved her servants, she loved the gardens she saw through windows (but had never entered) and she loved the strenuous lessons her father gave her in his study. Her days passed without worry for many years. 

The mage’s daughter’s name was Irisviel, and on a bright morning she woke up and realised how much of the world is beyond the walls. 

It was not a sudden clarity, nor was it preceded by a helpful vision in a dream. Irisviel was a clever young woman, and even though even the book she read were strictly monitored, she pieced together the truth from slips of the tongue and scraps of information. 

At first, she fumed quietly. Then, she grew sad, and wondered why her family kept her so isolated. Finally, she began to think of how to escape. 

It was not her intention to leave her house permanently. Just for a few days, a few weeks at most. She was certain, however, that her father would not allow even that, and that every person in the castle was on his side. (Irisviel didn’t blame the servants or the guards for not willing to brave the fury of a mage after he found out he had been betrayed.) 

She sneaked into her father’s library, once, twice, many times, until she found what she needed. A spell that could set her free. She stole the book that contained it and placed it behind a loose brick in her room. For days she dared not open it.

When she did, she practiced the spell for several tiring days and sleepless nights. If her father noticed the lack of sleep affecting her, he said nothing. The magic would elude her like a slippery fish until, suddenly and without fanfare, it yielded. Irisviel looked at her hands for a long time afterwards, trying to feel out the possibility she now held. Her father would have been proud.

Her work wasn't finished, though. The same night, she tiptoed outside her room. Sneaking from shadow to shadow, she studied the layout of her home more closely than ever before. 

It took several such trips until Irisviel knew how she could escape. In the meantime, she continued to practice the spell that would aid her, fearing that every success was a fluke. When she finally felt she would never be more prepared, she dawdled two days more, plagued by sudden doubts. Eventually, the dream of standing under the open sky won out. 

The following night, under a new moon, Irisviel rushed to the corner of her home that she thought was the most remote. After making sure no one would see her escape, she pressed her palm against the cold wall and whispered the spell. 

The wall became pliant and translucent, like a thin veil of water, and Irisviel stepped through it without trouble. Behind her, the wall shook for another moment, and turned back to stone. 

Wasting no time, Irisviel made her way down the steep path that led to the road she had seen from her window. Her soft shoes were not made for such an endeavour, and stones dug into her feet, but she paid no mind to the discomfort - not when she was almost bursting with joy and curiosity. 

The effort had, nevertheless, exhausted her, and when she reached the road Irisviel almost collapsed to the ground. As she caught her breath, she looked around. In the darkness, the road seemed to run into an emptiness - though she supposed daylight wouldn't have been much help, as she never saw where it ran from her windows, either. Deciding not to dawdle, she turned to the right, and set to walking.

 

 

By the time she came to another stop by a crossroads, in the shadow of a tree she was overjoyed not to recognise from the books, the night had begun to thin. Towards the east, she could see a faint grey aura. Dawn was nearing, and with it, the moment her absence would be discovered. Surely, her father would send someone to search for her - and Irisviel knew she had little chance of outrunning them. Her feet ached, and there was a rip in her dress. 

For the first time, she regretted leaving. And with her mind so occupied, she was surprised to hear someone approach. 

She turned toward the sound and saw a figure leading a horse. Their face was hidden by a black hood, but under the cloak, Irisviel glimpsed something silvery. Armour. The other traveller was a knight, she guessed. She nodded her head in a greeting, though she wondered if they would pay it any mind. 

They had - and returned the greeting by taking their hood off and bowing deeply. Then they spoke: 

"Are you troubled, my lady? We are far from any village, and it is not safe to travel alone." 

She - for now Irisviel had recognised that the knight was a woman - had a clear voice, and though she had spoken softly, it carried an impression of nobility.

The traveller offered Irisviel a hand, and she took it, standing up with a little hesitation. 

"I am well," she answered. "Though I must travel far and I have little time, I am well and safe." 

She gestured with her head toward the direction she was heading, not wishing to reveal she had no clear destination. The knight followed her gaze. 

"This is a perilous road," she said, and turned back to face Irisviel. "But as we will both travel it, I would be honoured to aid you, my lady." 

The mage's daughter was taken aback, but quickly gathered her thoughts, and thanked the knight profusely. 

"The honour and privilege would be mine. My name is Irisviel, and I would very much like to be your traveling companion." 

The other woman smiled, and extended her right hand again. 

"I am pleased to meet you, Irisviel. I am called Arturia." 

And so, the mage's daughter escaped from her tower.

 

***

 

Irisviel leans against a tree, the bark rough against her cheek. She treasures new sensations, even unpleasant ones - possibly even more now that she's uncertain of what will happen.

The forest is quiet around her, and even the slightest sound jumps to her attention - the shuffle of the horses' hooves against the fallen leaves, a songbird sitting down on a branch, the softest blow of wind. 

Arturia should be back soon. Irisviel both wishes to see her and dreads the news she will bring. 

The last few towns they had passed all had guards posted, and the people within them have all heard about the runaway mage's daughter - or, more accurately, a reward for those who will return her home, "safe and sound". Irisviel balls her hands into fists at the idea. She had expected trouble, maybe a search party, but not this. She and Arturia haven't been able to visit a town without her being recognised for weeks, and while so far they had been able to escape trouble...

She knows that Arturia is skilled with her sword, but she wishes never to see her put it to use against other people. So far, there has been no reason for Arturia to draw her weapon, though there were times - like after they bought Irisviel's horse - that came close. The memory of that incident makes her shiver. This is not what ever wanted, or expected. 

An owl's hoot, louder than other birds and odd in the middle of the day, wakes Irisviel up. It's the signal she and Arturia have agreed to use. And soon enough, the knight herself appears in the clearing. With her armour exchanged for simpler, black horse-riding clothes, she looks much smaller. 

She's frowning, but before she starts to deliver what must be worrying news, Irisviel has already ran up to embrace her. Arturia stiffens in her arms for an almost unnoticeable moment, and then sighs and wraps her arms around Irisviel, pulling her even closer. 

When they finally draw apart and sit down, Arturia takes a moment to unbraid her short hair, and begins speaking. 

"The city is heavily guarded, just like we expected. The guards are more attentive, too - I haven't seen any of the posters, but we might as well assume they know about us." 

Irisviel swallows and looks down, on her balled-up fists. 

"I'm so sorry for ... for all this, Arturia." The words feel heavy, uncomfortable on her tongue, though she's spoken them many times before. "I never --" 

"Iri, please don't. I'd offered my help willingly and I'd never go back on my word. No matter the circumstances, I'll stay by your side." 

Arturia's words aren't dishonest, and it makes Irisviel’s guilt worse. 

 

The sunset near, and the light changes. A few weeks, even days ago, Irisviel would have marvelled at it. The darker shadows, the way orange hues blend with the green leaves. Today, she barely notices it, or the growing chill in the air, until Arturia wordlessly puts a shawl around her shoulders. 

Her companion has been silent for a long while. Unusually long, even for her. 

Irisviel plays with the edge of her shawl, significantly dirtier and more worn down since she first wore it. In the back of her mind, she's been trying to remember what she had learned. If magic helped her once, it should be able to help her again - and she is sure she learned at least one appearance-altering glamour. If she cut her hair short, and changed its colour... 

"Iri..." 

Of course, the more problematic matter are her eyes. In her entire life, she had never thought them unique - certainly, none of the servants she saw had ones like hers, but no-one had commented on it. If only they were a bit darker, a rich brown instead of red... 

"Iri." 

She snaps her head up. 

"I'm sorry," Arturia says softly. "I was thinking about our ... situation, and I might have a solution. But I'm afraid you might not be comfortable with it." 

"I'd like to hear it just the same," Irisviel replies, and moves to sit closer to Arturia. The knight had started a small fire, and the pinecones thrown into it crack cheerfully. Another small thing Irisviel hadn't known about the world. 

"Until now, we've been traveling to the south and west," Arturia began, pointing to a crude map she had evidently just drawn on the ground. "Which has brought us to this area." She circled a small portion of it. "Which is very close to a border." 

"A border with what country, though?" 

"My homeland, Iri." 

The words hung in the air as Irisviel thought of the very few occasions Arturia had spoken of her past.

She hadn't expected this offer. 

"We would have to cross far away from the main roads, possibly further to the west, where the terrain gets hillier." 

Arturia's own journey didn't have her home as the destination, and Irisviel knows this. But they don't have to stay there forever. Her father's influence is not boundless, and he will eventually give up. He can have other children yet. She can wait this out. 

"What would your plan be after we cross the border?" She asks, instead of answering. 

"I would be more than happy to let you stay at my family's home until we were certain it's safe for you to travel again." 

Irisviel wonders, briefly, if she's ready to live inside four walls again, then chides herself. Though she has grown to love the open air and the freedom of not sleeping under an overly-familiar ceiling, she shouldn't be willing to sacrifice safety for it. 

So, instead, she reaches for Arturia's hand. 

"Would you truly be willing to put your own journey aside for me again?" She asks. "I've already kept you distracted enough." 

Arturia looks at her, her eyes just slightly widened, and smiles. 

"Think of it as me taking a detour. I would much rather travel with you, Iri, and it's nothing that can't wait a little longer, I promise." 

"And I promise I won't ask you to stay with me any longer than you wish to." Irisviel feels something inside of her twist; she should have said these words much earlier. "I'm sorry it took me so long to say it." 

"Don't be," Arturia whispers, before leaning in to press their lips together. 

Irisviel sighs into the kiss, just a little, with relief, and in return feels a small smile. It's strange how quickly this became easy and familiar, among all things she had learned in the last few weeks. Arturia's hand settles at the back of her neck, warm and comforting, and for the first time today, Irisviel allows herself to feel happy.

 

"Thank you," she says, after she has pulled away. "Thank you for staying with me, Arturia." 

Arturia smiles, the same small smile she has seen and felt many times, before bringing Irisviel's hand up to her mouth and kissing it. 

"Anything for you, Irisviel," she replies. 

 

Morning comes, and with it calls of birds. Irisviel stirs on her blanket and slowly cracks her eyes open. Inches from her face, Arturia is still dozing, hair falling over her eyes. A small patch of sunlight dances on her cheek. 

Irisviel smiles.

**Author's Note:**

> and they lived happily ever after and no one died and fate/zero had been a lesbian romantic comedy all along
> 
> title comes from a conversation iri and saber have in the f/z novels; iri compares being free to walk outside the einzbern castle to being reborn. on the nose? maybe, but idk what to say otherwise. i just hope it doesn't take me four months to finish the next request orz


End file.
